Transition to Corp Dev/M&A
Hi all,
Currently a 25 year old FA a F100 Tech company for going on 1 year now. I do enjoy my job but I feel like now is the time to start pursing my true interest of working for a company and dissecting acquisition targets financially in order to decide if it will be viable.
Currently my role includes modeling Tech sales opportunities for deals anywhere from $1M to $100M in revenue, among other ad hoc models and reporting. While this is good I want to be doing models for an entire business with all the factors that come into play as opposed to a single business deal.
I realize that getting into a Corp Dev role is nearly impossible without having some IB or PE experience (as it likely should be) and my question is what action steps can I take right now to bring myself closer to being a serious candidate for this role.
Would appreciate any and all advice/answers. This is something I'm willing to dedicate my time and effort to but having some direction would help!
Thanks,
Hey there! You're not in as bad a position as you think! Being at a big company in a finance function gives you some skills that are needed to be able to move to a Corp Dev team. With that being said if I were in your shoes I would first work on transitioning internally. Network within your company with some of the corp dev/strategy folks and see if the work is really something you would be interested in. I would also discuss with my boss that I would like some exposure to M&A and the corp dev team. Being in a finance function someone on your team is bound to work pretty closely with corp dev when it comes to deals, find out who that is and ask to be staffed on some of those projects. Skill set wise I would start to learn the mechanics of a full blown financial model. It sounds like you have some decent exposure and knowledge to forecasting models which will help. Outside of that I would start to understand and learn about DCF's, comparable transactions and precedent transactions. Those are the three valuations I think you will use the most. This will be helpful when you start to network as you can "talk the talk". If you start to think a transition internally does not seem likely then I would aim for some smaller companies. Those tend to be more open to different backgrounds for corp dev positions. Another avenue is to try to move into banking and then move to corp dev, not sure you have an interest in banking? Happy to answer any other specific questions you have!
Thanks so much for the response! This is very helpful advice. My company is very large and our FP&A team and Corp Finance team actually do not work together at all (from my experience at least) so I will definetly reach out to those at the Director level for more clarity. And I will begin delving into DCF's & those valuation methods, do you recommend the courses on here? If so which in specific?
When you say "interest in banking" is that referencing IB? While I would like to move to Corp Dev I do understand I may need to go through trial by fire so to speak and get more deal experience as an IB before having the credentials to move to Corp Dev. Does this sound accurate or am I just overthinking it?
Sorry if I am asking too many questions but I appreciate your answer!
Definitely reach out to your directors I'm sure someone on the team is helping the CD people. In terms of modeling courses I did the wall street prep one which I thought was great. I have heard good things about the wall street oasis one as well.
Yes I meant interest in IB. I think your idea about going from IB to CD is definitely the easiest route although personally I never did IB and have been in CD a few years at large tech companies. I think the networking is key coming from your position. If you have a rough understanding of modeling and the M&A process you can really learn the rest on the job. CD is great because it is a lot slower than banking so your bosses should be able to spend more time teaching and getting you up to speed on M&A.
Keep the questions coming!
I will! Sorry for delay been busy but after I get off work I have been studying the 4 main Valuation methods. I am starting to feel more comfortable with them conceptually so now I think is time to start doing mock models and applying the knowledge. My question is how long or how confident should I feel doing these before applying to a Corp Dev/ Valuation Analysis role? I only ask because I set like a 2-3 month timetable for myself so I know my stuff down pat but I also don’t want to wait longer than I have to to start getting those applications out.
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